Gay Art Student Will Lose His Virginity In Front Of An Audience For Project

My college-level art class projects involved lots of sketching fruit in charcoal on various mediums. One of 19-year old Clayton Pettet's art projects will involve losing his anal sex virginity in a performance art piece in front of a live audience. Did I attend the wrong school?

Clayton (pictured above) will perform "Art School Stole My Virginity" on January 25, 2014. In the piece, he plans to bottom for the first time with a close friend taking the top.

"The key thing about performance art is that it should only be performed once, and this is the ultimate once-in-a-lifetime performance," Clayton said.

He adds:

"I've held on to my virginity for 19 years, and I'm not throwing it away lightly. Basically it's like I am losing the stigma around virginity.

"I want the audience to see if anything has changed between me and my partner.

"Since culturally we do hold quite a lot of value to the idea of virginity I have decided to use mine and the loss of it to create a piece that I think will stimulate interesting debate and questions regarding the subject."

To me it is more artistic and beautiful to hold onto that which God gave us and to only use it in the ways it is designed to be used. This saddens me so much to see that this will attract much attention because it is provocative and daring when in reality it is a poor man doing something that is going to give him an pleasureful exstacy but take away much of the innocence he may have once had. We are all evil beings, we can see that society keeps us in check, but putting things like this in the spotlight is always such a destructive thing to our children and our souls.
To have people watch this live is in my eyes a tragic act of prostitution.
I wouldn't put this man down anymore for doing this as a gay man than as a straight art student. It is abusing his virginity completely. Sex is only a medium of beauty and art when it is used in a way to bring glory to God, that is, when it is used the way it is designed. On a stage in front of an audience is not beautiful art in my mind. I am sorry that most of us cannot see that this is not what it is designed for :(

Beautiful and expressivesnapshot of intimacy that he can preserve. In addition, he can 'educate' other teens as to the pros and cons of intimate acts shared in this format. We have a huge amount of youngsters already pushing the envelope with porn-for-pay on their computers, i.e. pay their way through college.

Performance Art is a beautiful thing.... as long as it is done in with a purpose!

And in this case, Clayton has an amazing reason to back it up.

SO, I'm a little baffled by so many people having a problem with it. Especially from fellow gay guys, I think it's sort of disgusting to make it out like he's some sort of sleazy little kid or an attention seeker. And anyway, so what if he is! Love the art, not the artist! I honestly can't wait to see this and I can't wait for the debate to commence.

Anyone who has a problem with this clearly doesn't understand art with a purpose at all. Go wank off to some dirty gay porno you little twats.

Now I'll be waiting, dick in hand, to wank to this kid being buttfucked - I've never wanked watching art before... Well, perhaps maybe some Tom of Finland, it's sort of art...

(a kid taking it up the ass is a kid taking it up the ass... if "having a purpose" is waht makes it art, then every daily action is art: I'm not really working, it's a performance; I'm not really on cam4: it's a videoperformance; my bedroom doesn't need cleaning: it's an installation...)(for fuckssake, where do you draw a limit? shooting someone in the face? eating someone? (actually, I think some dutch guys tried this one 2 or 3 yrs ago...) you don't draw a line, at all? every shit is art? (it is - duchamp... done)

printed or visual material containing the explicit description or display of sexual organs or activity, intended to stimulate erotic rather than aesthetic or emotional feelings.

The difference is actually in the intent. If this piece were performed in an adult theater where the main purpose was to sexually stimulate the audience, it would be pornography.
Since the stated purpose here is art, then it is not pornography.

Some audience members may be sexually stimulated but that does not make it pornography. As an example, there may be some individuals that have an erotic fascination with horses yet that does not make the Kentucky Derby porn.

Being that this is Clayton's "first time" bottoming, I fear that he is truly unprepared for what's to come (pun intended). Sexually speaking, I hope he has practiced with sex toys. I also hope he cleans himself properly before performing. Accidents do happen & we seriously don't want a public spectacle to draw attention to the wrong thing. My other concerns are; what will happen if he or his male counterpart becomes stage frightened or doesn't perform to full completion? Will that effect his grade? Will they be practicing safe sex? Is there crowd control against others wishing to join or interupt? And, according to another article, apparently the artist has yet to tell his parents. What would happen if his parents paid him a visit?

I support his creativity. But really, is this art? If so, prepare for other "art galleries" & "theatrical performances" throughout the country. This will definitely draw that proverbial line of what is & isn't accepted.

There's got to be something ELSE going on besides the public sex to make it art...(in my opinion). And just because it's shocking and controversial, doesn't make it a brilliant, conceptual think/discussion piece, does it? Having said that, this guy is free to do as he pleases, obviously.

I'm going to smear shit all over my body and call it art, and who are you to tell me it's not? My favorite art projects include Debbie Does Dallas and the repair job of the pot hole on the street I live on. Any talentless hack can produce "art" these days. Making a sex tape isn't art; if you think it is, then you're an idiot and probably a hipster.

Well damn... so much for my original idea. Back to the drawing board. Maybe I could orchestrate a drone strike on some tribal village in Waziristan and call that art. I would imagine the changes in my art project would be more profound than the ones that this guy is planning.

wow and I usually keep my mouth shut and I don't know any of these people commenting besides you John...so here it goes --- WHO THE FUCK ARE WE TO JUDGE OR EVEN COMMENT. And then us gays are asking people to be more open minded towards our "unconventional" lifestyle in the society and open to the concept of homo weddings, having kids and butt sex. I get that taking the specifics into account being gay and doing this boys art project seem so different and can argue about it but when you take it to the ground level it's all about accepting what makes others happy and inspired, without us putting our selfish "not accepting" and "not matching to my world view" judgement into it.

Then we as a society ask why are Americans more extreme and bigoted towards the unknown and different. Like Westboro Baptist, for example --- they are doing just fine. They still have very strong followers, yes not that many, but they still exist... They get ungodly amount of press and that allows them to be accessed and noticed by almost all 300 million Americans, maybe even internationally, which exposes them to more people who donate money and carry on their crazy and nasty message, because it's COOL to be different. Being extreme gets you noticed and the louder, more bigoted and obnoxious you can be the more press you'll get. Well, if you keep telling that to society 24/7 then sure, sign me up I want to be cool and extreme --- because everyone wants to be noticed and shine and have their 15 minutes of fame.

Maybe he is trying to say something with his extreme experimental art to find at least one person who gets him and sees it as he sees it. So all of us are the creators of this so called art piece. We, as a society have created that.
For me the ACT itself makes perfect sense and I am looking it from the not being raised in the US side. He is just simply a very dramatic/outrageous shot for the 15 minutes of fame because he wants to be cool and I think he is also trying to push our open mindedness and acceptance levels. On top all of that he has got some freaking balls, because he truly must believe in himself and also in his work to do something like that.

We as gays can't ask acceptance from the community if we are haters ourselves of the unknown. Yes, this doesn't make much sense on the art level, at least for me, but who am I to judge him. So we as part of the society need to applaud something about this piece and take the positive away from this. He is not mentally/physically hurting or killing anyone. We need to take the "I" away from the whole concept and just be as accepting and open minded as we can, even though we will never live our lives like he is .

I am just truly disgusted how judgmental people are without anyone having the right to judge in the first place. Get hell down from your rainbow, glitter bomb unicorns. I am sure all of us have done some maybe questionable things in the eyes of the majority. Hell, someone is still not OK us being simply gay and we can tell them as many times how "normal" and loving it is for us to put our dicks into our butts and why one has a problem with us gays just for being happy and proud of who we are. But that selfish and bigoted "I" gets in the way. At one point it took one person to change the perspective of us gays, so why aren't we the role models since we know how it feels to be hated and judged for doing something that simply makes us happy, without mentally/physically hurting anyone else. So stop rolling our own problems and issues with this and simply be there for this kid and be happy for him because he obviously is so happy doing this and it means something to him even deeper that we could ever understand. I think that right there is simply so fragile and beautiful. Also, be there for him if something goes bad or wrong or he needs a shoulder to cry on because it sucks when people don't get your happiness and judge it based on their own lives. As a fully happy and proud homosexual myself, I see it as an opportunity to show others how it's done because we can't just sit down and start to demand something without making the first steps ourselves --- Just simply because it makes us HAPPY, being full forced grindr, bathhouse glory hole, butt sex loving homos, doesn't mean rest of the society that they should accept us and be open minded.It simply doesn't show good enough of a reason for everyone because the majority is afraid they will start loving grindr, bathhouses and anal sex if they will accept and be open minded about us gays. We need to show them how it's done and show them that accepting and being open minded about an individual, with no judgment, who wants to loose his virginity in a glass box and call it an art doesn't change us to go in a glass box and loose our virginity in front of an audience.

All of this is just so hypocritical. If, I would be any of the commentators above and took a deeper look in the mirror, I would just vomit all over my Gucci loafers because my consciousness wouldn't let me to be so hateful and shitty.

By saying all of this is not out of judgment but hoping at least one of you would wake up and change the picture and also the person that looks back in that pretty mirror of yours. Peace out, crawling to my gay bed next to my beautiful gay husband:-) Judge me for it.

I never do understand why people go into comments sections to rant about the action of commenting and how they think others don't have a right to do so if it's anything but flowery and supportive.

The existence of this article means we're entitled to judge. The existence of this comment section means we're entitled to comment. Our very existence means we're entitled to formulate an opinion. It's just that simple.

You have judged those whose opinion you feel is wrong and seen good to comment on it. Don't start it off by condemning them for doing it first. It's not that they're not entitled to be disgusted or outraged or think this is bullshit - and, FYI, when it comes to modern art, opinions are always divided and rarely do we as a species gather to congratulate the artist for their work - it's just that you disagree with the opinion they're expressing. So you yourself get to express your opinion.

Ta da!

Seriously though. This guy's claiming it to be a piece of art. People will criticise or praise as they see fit. Feel free to argue against them but don't act like an ass by telling them not to judge or comment when you clearly can't show them the same courtesy by judging them and then commenting on it.

He's saying "EVERYONE" has the right to speak up, but what he's disgusted with is the obvious bigotry and hate that everyone has to bring into their thoughts about a matter. Just because we don't agree with something doesn't make us right or wrong, but it does make it a point that we should learn to agree to disagree. And while you're there, sir or madam, perhaps you should remember that sarcasm is the tool of those not clever enough to have an intellectual, rational discussion. I wish you the best, sir.

What an amazing concept for a performance art piece. I would love to see this not just for the change that might occur between the performers. But for the change the awakening brings the virgin himself.

Art is in the eye of the beholder. I applaud Jake for doing this. I hope it goes well. One thing is certain, his experience will last forever. Can you imagine what the model for Michelangelo's "David" would say if he knew that his naked body has been viewed by millions of people for hundreds of years?

I am not going to write a thesis voicing my thoughts about his decision. Because, what I or others think about what he chooses to do with his life are irrelevant. However, I do have a problem with the negative and preposterous attention it is going to cast yet once again against the entire gay community. I understand the need to be bold and express yourself. But, there are fine lines of decency that anyone.. gay, staight, bi, etc. should not be crossing and especially out in public. I mean, if you want to express this, then do so in our own community. For example, a bath house where that type of behavior is expected. Or join the Adult Film Industry.

"I've held on to my virginity for 19 years, and I'm not throwing it away lightly."

Wow. NINETEEN whole years! He's held on to his virginity for his ENTIRE (not-yet-even-out-of-his-teens) life! Get out the record books and prepare the Nobel Prize!

Maybe when he's older, has lived a few life lessons, he'll realize that there's a BIG difference between ART and a STUNT -- and that losing one's virginity would have been something much more meaningful if done in private and not on a stage for attention.

"I want the audience to see if anything has changed between me and my partner."

Right. But to do that -- IF that was REALLY his purpose in all of this -- the audience would have to already fully KNOW this 19-year-old kid and his partner, and have an intimate understanding of their relationship. Oh, wait. I get it. He's of the age and mindset that he feels the whole world already DOES know him. SHOULD know him!! Ah, the "me-ness" of youth!

Someday he'll wish he'd made more of his mistakes with brushes on canvass -- instead of with his exhibitionist persona on a stage...

Your response is the most sensible thing on this page! This "artist" is still a child! He is not even old enough to have a drink. I hope someone will talk him out of sharing, what should be, a highly personal experience .... with a room full of strangers.

I believe what will make this "performance" art or not is all the extras. The lighting, the setting, the sound, narration? I can see it being really cool if we were hearing their thoughts over a loud speaker. I just hope he's practices with a dildo first or he may be in for a big (or not so big) surprise. It's not so pretty. As far as "saving" it for 19 years, I don't buy it. Saving it would be someone that was in their late 20's or 30's. If he has been saving it, it's really only been for 5 or 6 years, anything before that would be molestation. I'm all for art and I do appreciate that he's stirring thoughts up for people, even myself. I wish him the best of luck. Personally I would love to see this show. But I know that my desire to see it comes from a purely carnal desire as I believe will be the case for most people wanting to witness the show. Good luck kid. Hope it's bareback with a creampie otherwise... YAWN!

Personally i do commend him for the idea and intention behind his "art piece"... with that being said the act of losing ones virginity is more of a personal stigma then a stigma of others since most people keep how they lost it personal and private. Yes some do label people whom lose their virginity at a young age a whore, slut, or the like. My question is, is this how you want to remember your first experience. Yes its wit ha friend and i am sure you care for them deeply, but that is not the type of love that should be answered with this act. If persay the person to which you are performing this piece with was the love of your life and both of you were virgins and wanted for the world to see that first expression of physical love, it would be almost sweet. However you are doing it for art, which i feel is something years, month, weeks, days, or even moments after you will forever regret. The lose of something so person so final, i hope you have thought this thru to its fullest extent. You wish to change peoples views, well people already believe homosexuals will do anything as an excuse for sex, tho that is not your intent it is however what you are showing. Small minded people will not see your message, not hear the beauty that you intend to show, or change there opinion by any stretch of the imagination. An yes even if you change even one persons point of view on the matter your project is technically a success. But, in the long run what have you done, what will this show people, what is truly learned in the end if such a precious thing that can only be given to one person and one person alone isn't for love. You wish to open their eyes an i understand that, but how is this in the long haul going to accomplish that. Artists have been using nudity and sex in art since the time of Michelangelo and Leonardo Da Vinci , and perhaps even earlier. I just hope you know what you are getting yourself into, both physically and mentally. Sex is also not pretty, as much as tv, movies, and porn would lead us to believe. Its ugly and messy and tho it may be beautiful to you and your partner to others it could look like nothing other then smut, unless this is carefully choreographed piece of work in which every step is planned out and every moment is quote un-quote perfected. In which case it is then nothing special and nothing meaningful and will harm the integrity of the are you are trying to express. I say all this out of concern, not just from me but the countless people who wish they could go back in time and make that moment perfect, with the perfect person, their one true love, the one they could say they are spending the rest of their natural lives with. I'll end this long ramble with this, imagine you have already done this, you get off the stage and you look in the mirror, are you truly going to like what you see, are you truly going to like how you feel, you expect applause, but what is there is none, are you prepared for the coincidences and aftermath if this isn't a success..... I wish you luck in this endeavor and wish you well

is this art or exhibitionism? As for "unique'" a "once in a lifetime"event, strikes me as a post modern theme- how repetitive it really is..As he tries to exhibit this most 'private'of moments,as the audience anticipates and desperately attempts to witness something unique, authentic, true,personal, intimate..etc...all that actually gets revealed in another porn act, that everyones seen ..yawn..a thousand times before...When we look for the real, we discover only simulation...

I guess I don’t really see the value in further sensationalizing/fetishizing both virginity and queer sex. But what I do find profoundly interesting is this collective queer cultural amnesia. Queer artist have been making art from the act of sex for a really long time. But one new hot bodied boy steps on the scene and we all just forget that Mapplethorpe and Warhol ever existed.

Modern/Contemporary Art pisses me off in general as an artist.. I get it... it's not all about the What, it's about the How and the Why... which yes, sometimes is interesting... but most of the time just makes one look pompous and self indulgent.

More than reading the article, I'm getting a kick at reading the responses. I marveled at how label oriented as a culture we are, we see something, read something, hear something and in a split second we are able to say—without much or any thought— it's porn, it's smut, it's art, it's childish, misguided, brave etc.... Perhaps the purpose of Art, is to challenge those very labels, notions, and speak directly to the gut, to the heart, and each one if you decide for yourself, did it speak to my own human experience and journey? If I hated it, why do I feel that way? What does it say about me that triggers those intense feelings inside me? I'd say, especially if you react negatively ask your self why?!?!?

Personally, I believe any virginal experience is a very sacred thing to share, and I'm impressed at the student's generosity. May he have many more virginal and ah ha moments, most people never notice them.

Ok at y'all. If the student wasn't a gay guy y'all wouldn't be saying half the shit y'all saying. Plus how could you say nudity and sex aren't art? When a huge percent of the most honorable art pieces includes nudity and sex. Y'all acting childish. I think it's an amazing and artistic idea, he held it for 19 years and he wants it to be special and memorable. This is art, something unique different and memorable

i don't really see anyone saying nudity isn't art it certainly can be, I think it's the public sex act people are debating... I see alot of people over-reacting, but many are also those over-reacting or assuming things from people who think this is a little ridiculous. And labeling just as much as the people they're trying to argue with

From what I have learned and I am not an artist by far. Art is passion and inspiration. When I look at any picture, drawing, or any piece of art I have a different interpretation than the guy next to me. I Think that art is all about your perspective and interpretation. Who is anyone to judge. Art is what the artist is feeling.

The framing of everyday acts (and as there are something like 8 billion people in the world, I'm pretty sure this is an everyday act) as art is touch-and-go as regards successful work...

He is doing a good job at making people think hard about banal acts!

A+

The actual action at this point isn't really very important, is it? He could probably do more with it, the actual action, I mean, lighting, sound, will there be a monologue? A dialogue? A commentator? Will the documentation *really* be the piece? Does it matter if anyone watches?

If I was his teacher, I would take issue with the odd statement, "performance art should only happen once" but that's not really what we're excited about here, is it? Anyway, let a thousand flowers bloom. Beats the heck out of the military industrial complex that "we" spend trillions of western money-units on.

"I strongly doubt there will be a serious reflection coming out of this performance. OK, he is testing the people's ability to stand in front two males having sex, OK his idea is to demystify some aspects of the anal virginity... But then what? Which are the questions that could arise from seeing this show with or without knowing the intention of the author? Does this generates a new conscience of the body? What kind of political proposal does public sex offers to us?"

On the other hand, there is so much deep-seated sex-negativity in our culture that I'd like to see go away so that we can just be free humans and things like this will be a non-issue. We're clearly not there yet, so I say, go for it. Just be very aware of what you're calling "art", and just make sure you don't erode your ability to feel intimacy, whether that intimacy is intimacy in front of an audience or intimacy in the bedroom.

This is nothing but a gay porn in the making. The only people that will attend such debauchery are those looking for a front row seat to a cheap peep show.. This is not art.. And I understand the whole "art is in the eye of the beholder" but seriously, I highly doubt this would ever win some sort of prize and a spot in a sophisticated art gallery.! It's just smut.

I strongly doubt there will be a serious reflection coming out of this performance. OK, he is testing the people's ability to stand in front two males having sex, OK his idea is to demystify some aspects of the anal viginity... But then what? Which are the questions that could arise from seeing this show with or without knowing the intention of the author? Does this generates a new conscience of the body? What kind of political proposal does public sex offers to us?

I only see a kid trying to have fun and thinking this really has relevance to anybody. I'd like him to train himself in an actual artistic discipline.

Very Well said. I have questions like that too. Specifically, who is this friend that will be topping. Has he ever topped before? How many times? Has his friend ever bottomed before? How many times? If these are two virgins then I see a spectacle of pain and embarrassment. If his friends is not a virgin is he going to wear a condom? Has his friend ever preformed this way in front of people. Nervous jittered will shrink his manhood with all those faces starring at him. What is people get inappropriate and start heckling or yelling out advice. This is a huge disaster in the making and you're right... to what artist depth would this display affect the audience. "Hey you guys. I just got back from watching this twinky lose his cherry. I feel so sophisticated now." I weep for the future.

This is just dumb and I'm not impressed by his mention that its a "college-level" class. Here is another queer looking to shock and awe the world with his inflated ego. Anal sex has been around as long as vaginal and ain't nothing about this kid and his butthole so freaking special that it needs to be on display. Maybe the "college" educated child ought to consider his wider community and how this might effect them, instead widening his butthole for all to see. I'm down for some art, so when the kid actually makes some let me know.

He is a performance artist so you would have to go to a show, it is not something you hang on your wall...and I am sure a lot of people would have no problem if a girl said she was going to lose her virginity as an art project, I am sure he has thought of lighting and such to make it artful and get his point across...and I do not agree with anyone that he is some kid just looking to have some fun...he is 19 if he was a typical kid looking to have some fun he would have lost is virginity years earlier...so who are we to judge him...you do not like it do not go see it or support it but leave the kid alone.

I for one would complain, and a hell of alot of people complained when a girl was selling her viriginity on Ebay several years ago (and even then that was proabbly more artistic than this)... it just reeks of cheap attention

There are literally hundreds of porn sites that specialize in this kind of "art" so it is most definitely not original and even more so not actual art. No matter if he says so. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, not the egotistical underdeveloped mind of this ignorant child.

It'd be "art"-ier if he didn't douche, ate a lot of chili, and got DP'd and/or DF'd whilst a top a large canvas. The resulting spray from the pull-out would likely be the envy of every budding Mapplethorpe in the audience; the memory of his screams bouncing about in their skulls, a leitmotif that they can remember for the remainder of their days, anytime they consider wasting everyone's time with such insipid drivel and nonsensical haberdashery.

Which, I can only assume, will be more times than not.

But good on him -- I hope he gets an A.

Or whatever pretentious artists with Non-Ideas need to get to pass to the next level of Hipsterdebaggery.